Monster Girl Quest!
by rubix22
Summary: In a world with cute monster girls abound, a young boy named Luka journeys to defeat the Monster Lord. A loose adaptation of the parody VN of the same name. Rape scenes have been removed for family friendliness. Chapter 4: Luka drops by Happiness Village only to find trouble?-! What's in store for our fake hero?-!
1. Chapter 1: Ilias Village

The villagers were screaming.

"Okay, calm down, calm down..."

One by one, they all fled into their homes and locked their doors.

"This is your chance..."

Windows were shut and curtains were drawn.

"There's nothing to be afraid of..."

And in an instance, the streets become completely desolate.

Ilias Village was under attack!

"You're a Hero...! And Heroes don't back down...!"

...

"...?"

Standing near the entrance of the small town, a confused looking slime girl tilted her head.

"..."

"_A-A-Ahem..._"

A boy approached the creature carefully. He took small and slow steps, and just in case, he had his hand on the hilt of his sword.

"_Um... you're, uh..."_

"...?"

The slime girl seemed to become even more confused at his appearance.

"_Y-You, uh, seem awfully close to this village here..."_

The boy spoke across the open gate nervously.

"_By any chance, could you, uh..."_

His lower body was involuntarily shaking.

"_Turn..._"

And for some reason, the inflection in his voice become extremely high-pitched at the last part.

"_Back...?"_

...

The monster girl placed a finger near her bottom lip.

"But... I'm hungry~ Ehehe~"

She giggled and scratched the back of her head.

"_I... I-I see..."_

Hesitantly, he gripped the sword in his hand.

"_Maybe... maybe we can... talk this out... you know..."_

"...?"

The slime tilted her head again.

"Is this your first time seeing a monster~?"

"E-Eh?"

"That's pretty cute~ You also smell good too~ Ehehe~"

She giggled again. And then she started approaching him.

"Err, uh..."

"Say, say~ Won't you let me have a taste~? I'll make you feel good too~"

"That's well, um..."

The boy was starting to get a really bad feeling from this.

"Oh~ This is bad~! Really bad~! At this rate, I won't be able to stop myself from attacking you~! Ehehe~!"

"E-EHHH...?"

The boy backed away, but then...!

…!

She leaped to his side and hugged his arm!

"Hey, hey~! Boy's like having this done to them, right~?"

The slime began pressing her cleavage up against him.

"W-W-Wait...! That's..."

...

And amidst his heavy blushing, he realized that his hand was, in fact, stuck inside the slime girl's body.

...

..._not good._

"..."

_Definitely not good... no, no, no, this isn't good at all..._

The boy's face was blank. He was in quite the situation.

…

And in a sudden movement...!

"Errrgh! G-Get off...!"

The boy made a futile attempt at pulling his arm away from the girl. But like being glued to a giant boulder, all he managed to do was drag the slime further into the village.

"Hey~ If you do that, it'll make it harder for me to digest you~!"

"I don't want to be eaten...!"

He screamed.

"Eaten~? All I'm doing is breaking down you clothes~"

"E-Eh?"

He stopped for a moment.

"It's true..."

Looking at his sleeve he could see the fabric starting to dissolve.

_But still..._

Looking up at the slime girl, he saw her grabbing her face in ecstasy.

"Kyaa~! You're filling me up so much~! Kyaa~!"

_I don't like this at all...!_

"Hey, if you like clothes, I've got tons of hand-me-downs back at my house! I'll give you some if you let go!"

"..."

The girl stared with a blank expression.

"That's... impossible~"

"Huh?"

"Once I've started digesting, it'll take a good while for me to stop~ And at that point, you'll be stuck all the way inside me~"

She grabbed her face again.

"And then after that~ We can be together forever~!"

…

"Is... that so..."

The slime's fluids were slowly creeping up his arm.

He was quickly being taken to slime heaven...

"..."

The boy unsheathed his sword with one hand.

...

"This... might hurt a bit... but I really don't want to end up inside of you, so..."

Holding the blade high in the sky, he grimaced.

"I'm sorry!"

…!

_Thud._

A dull sound.

"Sorry about what~?"

The blade slowly sunk into the slime's body with minimal effects. Upon pulling it, he realized that it too had become stuck.

"..."

"Damn it...!"

The boy raised his leg to kick her off, but his foot got stuck.

"Arrghhh...!"

"..."

* * *

><p><em>My name is Luka...<em>

A figure in the distance was struggling.

"BLOOOUGH-OOORGH-OOORGH!"

_I was born and raised in Ilias village, and up until this day, I've trained to become a Hero._

"BLOOOUGH-OOORGH-OOORGH!"

Having three-fourths of his body already inside the slime girl's body, Luka only had one leg to maneuver himself with.

_And once I receive Ilias's blessing today, I can finally start my journey to defeat the Monster Lord..._

"BLOOOUGH-OOORGH-OOORGH!"

Of course, his head was inside the slime girl as well...

He really might die from this.

"Ararara~? Where are you taking me~?"

_Though..._

Unsteadily hopping on one leg while carrying the slime girl, he reached a well...

And threw himself inside of it.

…

"..."

...bubbles started to appear on the edge of the water.

As more bubbles started surfacing...

…!

"BWA-HAAAA-!"

Luka's head escaped to the surface. Finally free of the slime, he clung onto the side of the fountain, sucking in the open air heavily to catch his breath.

His clothes, though drenched, were only slightly disintegrated.

"I... I... I did it... Ha... ha ha..."

...

And so, in the battle between Luka and the slime, Luka had become victorious... !

Sort of...

"Uuuuu~!"

The boy looked beside himself to find the slime girl's face floating in the water. She seemed to be pouting.

"I can't take form anymore~! What's going to happen to me~?"

…

Still gasping for breath, Luka looked at the monster girl with a fatigued expression.

…

_It's not like I hate monsters or anything..._

* * *

><p>Luka was walking towards the outskirts of the village with a bucket in his hands. Along the way, he met with and greeted a few soldiers, who all seemed to be looking for someone.<p>

_A long time ago, humans and monsters used to be able to live together in harmony..._

_While not a perfect relationship, it was a time where there were no open hostilities between the two groups. And in a way, there was a sense of coexistence that allowed both sides to accept one another without prejudice..._

_However..._

_30 years ago, an incident occurred..._

_The "Slaughter of Remina"..._

_Remina, a town near the Monster Lord's castle, was victim to a massive raid of monsters, turning it into a scene of hell..._

_There were no survivors, and only ruins proved that the event happened..._

_In an outcry, humans began to force monsters out of towns, and wild monsters in turn started attacking human settlements..._

_And then, the Monster Lord declared war on humanity..._

…

_Though I say "war", the degree of "conflict" usually varies by the area..._

_There are some places that are unchanged after the event, accepting of both man and monster..._

_Other places, however, aren't so kind..._

_That said..._

_I'm sure if I defeat the Monster Lord, who's forcing monsters to do evil, everything will go back to the way they once were..._

_My goal is coexistence. And for that, I must defeat the Monster Lord._

_..._

In the forest just outside of Ilias Village, Luka waved goodbye to the bucket shaped slime girl.

"It's dangerous around these parts, so don't come back."

"Oka~y!"

The slime slid off deeper into the forest.

The boy heaved a sigh.

"..."

Unconsciously, he rubbed the Keepsake Ring he was wearing.

_Defeat the Monster Lord, huh..._

* * *

><p>"Damn!"<p>

Luka was sprinting back to Ilias Village.

_I took too much time...! If I run, maybe I'll be able to make it to the temple...!_

_That's right...! Today is the 'Day of Departure'...!_

_For every hero, they must receive Ilias's blessing on this day and this day only...!_

_And if I don't make to the temple by noon today, I won't ever be recognized as a hero...!_

…!

_Man...! I'm such an idiot...!_

_To think that I'd almost miss such an important day as today...!_

_I even spent all last night practicing being baptised...!_

_I was so excited about my baptism, I forgot to eat breakfast as well..._

...

Slowly, a moronic grin appeared on the boy's face.

He chuckled at the cliched thought of running back home with a piece of toast in his mouth.

…

And then...

The skies darkened.

And a low rumbling sound vibrated throughout the area...

The clouds above spread apart abnormally, leaving a halo of empty black space in the stratosphere...

It was if the heavens were preparing to send something down at that very moment...

...

And of course, it was...

...

A girl fell from the sky...

…

Actually, rather than 'fell', it was more like 'crashed', as she impacted the earth like a bolt of lightning...

And with a terrifying sound, Luka was thrown up into the air from the force of reverberations alone. He didn't even have enough time to process what had happened.

...

"..."

Clouds dispersed.

Rays from the sun slowly started to bring back life to the area again.

And Luka was...

...

His arms shook as he attempted to lift himself from the ground.

"..."

Looking up, he noticed a crater filled with smoke.

_This... This is...!_

Struggling to his feet, he stepped in close enough to see through the dust. A lone figure was lying down in the rubble.

…_?_

_A girl...? No..._

_A monster...?_

Noticing that her lower half somewhat resembled a snake...

_She's... a lamia...?_

…_!_

But before he could delve himself any further into the situation, Luka glanced towards the village in the distance. The 'Day of Departure' was still racing in his mind, but...

Who was this that appeared before him...?

His mind wavered between the two as if he were balancing them on a scale...

...

He decidedly shook his head.

_I... I can't just leave her alone..._

...

Cautiously walking into the crater, he found himself almost tripping over broken bits of rock and dirt. He called out to her.

"H-Hey!"

He stepped closer to the creature.

"Are you..."

And stopped...

Seeing her up close, the boy was entranced. And seeing her lying unconscious added to the effect somewhat...

"..."

Her hair was silver, and her skin was discolored...

But her appearance could hardly be called ugly...

In fact, if she were a human, she had the type of looks that could easily be scouted to become an idol of some sort.

For Luka, to be in the presence of such a being for the first time, it was awe-inspiring...

…

"..."

And then her eyes slowly opened.

"...!"

The lamia used her tail to balance her upper body up-straight. She held on to the side of her head in pain.

"Ugh..."

In retrospect, it was quite amazing for a being to take a fall like that and complain like it was only a migraine...

But, she was a monster, so she was probably a bit more resilient than a human.

"_Damn..."_

She appeared to be muttering something, but Luka didn't catch wind of what exactly she said.

And it was a fact that Luka was still there, smiling like an idiot.

"..."

The monster girl noticed his presence.

"..."

"..."

It was if a staring contest had taken place...

But before it could get that interesting, she spoke to him in a cut-throat tone.

"You. Tell me where I am."

"...Eh?"

"I'm asking. Where am I?

"..."

"..."

Luka was still smiling like an idiot. It was probably because his mind was still trying to catch up to the situation at hand.

"..."

"Tch..."

_Flash!_

The lamia's eyes lit up with a strange light...

And in reaction, Luka jumped. Now standing up with his back straight, he somewhat resembled a toy soldier.

"You are currently close to Ilias Village, Miss Monster!"

The boy's words were stiff and automatic as they came from his mouth.

"Ilias Village...?"

"Correct, Miss Monster!"

Her eyes darkened at the information.

"..."

The lamia got lost in thought for a moment, but she broke the silence with another question.

"...and who exactly are you?"

"I'm just a lowly Hero apprentice from Ilias Village, Miss Monster!"

And then the boy broke free from his trance. He shook his head.

_Wait, what the-?_

The monster, taking no notice, continued with one-sided conversation.

"Apprentice...? That means you haven't been baptised yet, right...?"

She licked lips. And Luka instinctively stepped back.

"Come to think of it, you smell pretty nice..."

"...Urk!"

Taking this as his cue to leave, he promptly turned around.

"Well, uh, since you seem to be alright, I'll just be going then!"

"Hold on."

The monster stretched her tail to catch the boy's legs. And having not been fast enough to escape, Luka tripped over. He was dragged across the ground before being held upside down in front of the lamia.

"Why didn't you kill me while I was unconscious?"

"...Eh?"

"I was vulnerable at the time. It was a good opportunity."

"That's... I..."

...

Luka looked away from the lamia's eyes.

"I... I didn't have a reason to..."

"..."

For some reason, he was becoming increasingly nervous. It was probably embarrassing for him to explain his actions so suddenly. And having a monster in his face probably terrified him to some extent as well.

But, he didn't have a reason to lie...

"..."

"That's... an interesting answer..."

The lamia narrowed her eyes.

"But you're aiming to be a Hero, aren't you? In the end a Hero's goal is to kill the Monster Lord."

The boy was feeling the blood rush to his head.

"Well, that may be true, but it's not like I hate all monsters... that is, I don't necessarily want to kill the Monster Lord either..."

He was getting a little dizzy.

"I just want to stop her from doing evil things... so to say..."

"...?"

It didn't look like the lamia understood his words. Instead, there was a look of dismay on her face.

Luka tried to explain himself further...

"That is... my goal is to make a world where man and monster can... coexist peacefully... and currently... the Monster Lord seems to be in the way... so..."

…

"..."

"That's it."

"That's it?"

"Yes."

"..."

The boy brought his half-assed explanation to an end.

...

"...are you an idiot?"

And then... she totally rejected everything he's lived his life for with one short phrase.

"What kind of dream is that...?"

"...well, I wouldn't say it's a dream-"

"Hmm...? So you believe in that immature view of world peace, with everyone living in harmony without issues...?"

"...when you say it like that, it doesn't-"

"What an absurd joke..."

The lamia let out a breath and turned away from the boy. Without thinking much, she started rambling about the Luka's prospective goal as if wasn't even there.

"A completely childish way of thinking..."

"A child who doesn't understand the world he's living in..."

"As if monsters can live hand-in-hand with humans..."

Luka was getting really sick.

"Ha...ha ha! It's almost funny!"

The boy suddenly dropped to the floor as the lamia loosened her grip.

"...Guh!"

"I see. I understand now. You have a mind of a little child."

Luka struggled back to his feet as the lamia beckoned him to go away with her hand.

"You should go now... _little boy_."

…

Her hand continued to make its small movements, as if she were shooing away a fly.

...

He turned away silently and slowly started walking...

But...

Before that...

"W-What do you know! You idiot!"

The monster watched as the boy ran off with tears in his eyes.

"I'll show you! I'll... I'll definitely defeat the Monster Lord!"

...

...

In retrospect, that's probably the way a child would act.

* * *

><p>It was noon.<p>

Exhausted from running, Luka was gasping for air. He stood at the entrance to Ilias Temple, but...

"Illias isn't here. She won't celebrate your coming of age or baptise you. Go away."

The priest shut the door on Luka.

"A...uh...ah..."

…

"..."

"Are you poisoned! Quickly! Take this antidote grass!"

Luka received an antidote.

"..."

The boy began nibbling on the plant as he staggered his way home.

* * *

><p>"..."<p>

Closing the front door to his house, Luka aimlessly wandered to his bed, completely ignoring the lamia in the middle of the room.

"Took you long enough."

"..."

Luka sat in the corner and hugged his knees. He had the expression of a man that was drowning underwater and yet wasn't even trying to swim to the surface for air...

"..."

"Oi."

"..."

Breaking from his trance, Luka suddenly became aware.

"W-What...! You...!"

"Notice me sooner, idiot."

"Why are you here...!"

The monster crossed her arms.

"I just wanted to confirm something."

Luka jumped off his bed and started closing his curtains.

"Are you stupid...? This village hates monsters...! If anyone finds out you're here...!"

...

And then it occurred to him...

He stopped and turned around...

"How did you get here without anyone noticing...? A slime appeared outside the village awhile ago and everyone was in an uproar... "

"Tricking humans is nothing to me. Just who do you think I am...?"

_I actually have no idea who you are._

The boy heaved a sigh.

He really didn't feel like knowing more about this monster. And plus, he was in the middle of sulking...

"In... any case, what kind of business do you have with me?"

...

A strange smile appeared on the monster's face.

"I heard Ilias didn't appear for your baptism..."

...

_...Eh? Did she really just come here to make fun of me?_

_More like, where did she hear this from...?_

"..."

Her expression changed.

"...I may have said too much earlier."

She slightly tilted her head and the pace in her voice changed as well.

"You just sounded so childish, I couldn't help myself. But..."

"I've traveled around the world and seen many things, and while your childishness is idiotic, it's a breath of fresh air."

"..."

_Is it possible... that she's trying to comfort me...?_

"Anyway, what do you plan to do now that you've failed to become a Hero?"

The boy reacted to her words as if they were stabbing him, however...

After staring at the monster, Luka heaved another sigh.

"Even if I'm not a Hero, I'll still go on ahead and try to defeat the Monster Lord. Not having Ilias's blessing worries me, but not going is out of the question..."

The monster girl put a hand to her mouth.

"Hahaha! You're interesting!"

The boy paled at her reaction.

"Being a person who can say something as ridiculous as 'I want man and monster to coexist', truly you are an interesting person!"

_She's making fun of me... She's definitely making fun of me..._

"Hahaha! I wonder how long this will last! I'll follow you to watch how this illusion of yours get broken!"

"Follow...?"

_She can't possibly mean..._

"If I'm going to travel around the world... I might as well travel around it with you."

…

And at that, Luka had received an ally.

To some extent...

"..."

"What's with that expression?"

"It's... nothing."

_At my level, I probably wouldn't be able to ward her off anyway..._

"That's right, it'd be pretty much impossible for the likes of you."

_Did she read my thoughts...!_

"As if I'd have such a convenient ability."

_Ah, that's good._

_But... now that I think about it, I guess it wouldn't be too bad to have a companion..._

...

He surrendered to the thought and made a slight groan.

_It beats traveling alone..._

...

"Say, what's your name?"

"...?"

The monster girl paused for a moment, but in the end, she made a devilish smile.

"Arisufi-zu Fateburn."

"Fateburn...?"

Luka seemed to react at that.

"Can I call you 'Fate'? I always wanted to befriend someone named 'Fate'."

"Do you want me to strangle you?"

"I... I was kidding..."

_It doesn't seem like she appreciates jokes. I should watch what I say when I'm around her..._

"Though... I'll allow you to call me 'Alice'. Would that be alright?"

...

_Alice, huh..._

_That name doesn't fit at all._

"Well then...

The lamia made a suggestion.

"Shall we head out?"

* * *

><p><em>And so the two of us, Alice and me, began our journey, traveling across the world, and hopefully, eventually heading towards the Monster Lord's Castle. Even though I wasn't officially a Hero, I would go on without hesitation! While not baptised, I had a heart of hero! And that's what counts!<em>

_And this in only the beginning of our adventure!_

The epilogue music plays.

_Huh...? It's over already?_

The scene starts to black out.

_Seriously, it's ending?_

And Luka's voice starts fading.

_This can't be right..._

END.

* * *

><p><strong>AN:** Before anyone asks, I suppose I should explain a few things.

This fic is a loose adaptation of a hentai VN, Monmusu Quest. Now why would someone make a fic about a hentai VN? The answer is not 'because I'm sick and twisted'. It's because I actually enjoyed the story. I found that if you completely ignore all the hentai scenes, it'd still end up being a pretty good VN. And so in here, I've made a loose adaptation of the story that doesn't include H-scenes. I also did other changes to the original story, but essentially, all the plot points should remain the same.

Next is categorization. There isn't a clear cut way to categarize a VN, since it's part game and part novel while retaining anime elements. That's three categories crammed into one. This may be cheating here... but I realized that this particular VN is arguably a parody of Dragon Quest, since it takes a lot of elements from that series. Even the names, Monmusu Quest and Dragon Quest, are similar. So I put it here. I suppose this is like making a fic for Red vs. Blue and putting it in the Halo section. While there technically isn't any canon, there's enough there to warrant its placement as it technically shares the same audience. At least that's what I hope.

For those of you who have played the VN, you may have noticed that the whole fight sequence with the slime was different from the original. You're right. It is. And all the other fights will probably be different too. The sequence of events also seem to be mish-mashed as well. Yeah, that's gonna happen.

For the majority of you who haven't played the VN, just don't worry about the source material. You shouldn't play it if you don't want to. And you definitely shouldn't play it if you're underage. Seriously.

Thanks for taking time out of your day to read this. And I'm out.


	2. Chapter 2: Iliasburg

_Where... am I?_

Luka was floating in an abyss of gray and white.

Stands of light rained down all around him while heavenly music filled the air. A warmth was overflowing throughout as he drifted aimlessly in the emptiness.

...

And then...

An angel appeared before him.

Golden hair.

Blue eyes.

A majestic figure in white.

Luka's breath was taken.

"Luka..."

Her voice was soft, but powerful. It was sweet, but commanding. And while it was kind, there was a certain sadness that dampened her tone.

The boy knew who this was without any doubt.

_...I-Ilias!_

"Oh brave Luka..."

She called to him again.

"Many years ago, in a time man cannot comprehend, I created this world...

First was the earth, sky, and sea...

Then the animals, birds, and insects...

And then finally, I created Humanity."

The angel shut her eyes.

"However...

I am not perfect. For all I have created, I have had many failures as well...

And those failures are the monsters that you know of."

"..."

Luka kept silent as he listened to every word.

"Monsters are truly evil beings, seducing humans to commit forbidden acts, even committing great acts of violence themselves...

Even though humans are weak, I still love them...

So I hate these detestable creatures that only bring them harm..."

"..."

"I have given my blessing and protection to many men, however, these monster still have not been exterminated...

But Luka...

I feel that you have the potential to defeat the Monster Lord!"

The boy felt his throat go dry as a sense of excitement started building up inside of him.

"I... I do? But, my baptism-"

His own voice was overwhelmed by hers.

"Luka... even though you yourself aren't baptized and remain unblessed... you must never lose faith in yourself...!

I'll always be watching you..."

"Ilias... just what do you mean...?"

While slightly perplexed at the angels words, Luka suddenly felt like he was on solid ground.

"...?"

"In any case, I shall teach you how to fight..."

"...Eh?"

"Beginning with the basics, the green bar that you have represents your HP."

"...green bar?"

"If you close your eyes, you should be able to visualize it... Let me demonstrate what happens when you get damaged in combat."

The angel raised a hand to the heavens.

"You should not worry, Luka... this will only be a small tap..."

"Um, err... I don't thi-"

[Judgement Tap]

"AAHHHGG!"

Lightning coursed throughout Luka's body, causing him to convulse.

While Luka was still recovering, the angel continued.

"Depending on how much damage you take, the gauge will decrease accordingly. It decreases with physical attacks, and through... other methods as well...

That is... instead of health, think of the gauge as a measurement of how close you are to losing in general...

And of course, if your HP reaches zero, you will lose the battle immediately.

The enemy should have a similar gauge which more or less works the same way."

Ilias smiled as she completed her small explanation of the mythical HP gauge.

"Do you understand, Luka...?"

…

The boy was catching his breath after being struck by lightning. Surely, if he were to visualize his HP gauge now, it'd show that he was on the brink of death.

"No, I don't think I understand anything at all..."

…

The angel frowned.

"Well then..."

She raised a hand to the heavens again.

"Let me demonstrate what happens when you get damaged in combat again."

"No! Wai-"

[Judgement Tap]

"AAHHHGG!"

Lighting coursed throughout Luka's body once more.

As Luka's consciousness started to fade, he saw the angel's shocked expression as she covered her mouth.

"Oops."

His vision blurred and his consciousness started fading, but he could still hear Ilias.

"Luka...! Before you go, remember..._you must never forg..._"

* * *

><p><em>Ssssss... Sssss...<em>

The sound of something being dragged across wet grass.

Luka woke up to that soft sound.

"A... dream...?"

_Ssssss... Ssss..._

"No, that was definitely Ilias..."

_Ssssss... Ssss..._

"She came to me while I was sleeping... Which means..."

_Ssssss... Ssss..._

"Ilias hasn't abandoned me...! Even though I'm not baptised, she's still watching over me...!"

The boy nodded to himself in content.

_Ssssss... Ssss..._

And then he noticed...

…

"Ah! Why didst thou tell me thine had awoken?"

...

_Who the hell..._

While still inside his sleeping bag, Luka was being carried in the arms of a girl.

Well... not really... but...

From where he was, he could see that the girl had dark blonde hair and beady eyes. Over her head was a hat similar to something a southern belle would wear.

That was it for the human aspects...

_Ssssss... Ssss..._

Luka looked to the side and noticed where that sound was coming from.

What may have looked passed for a long black dress from a distance was really just a part of her body. That said, this girl had the lower half of a slug.

_Ssssss... Ssss..._

"Darling! Didst thou seeith a phantom? Thou face is ice-cold!"

"..."

His survival instincts finally kicked in. In the course of a second, Luka had unzipped his sleeping bag and slipped out of the monster girl's arms.

Tumbling across the ground, he somehow found the footing to stand up straight.

"...! This be magic! How dost thee shed thy skin so quickly!"

The girl dropped the sleeping bag and promptly slid over it in attempt to chase after the fleeing boy.

And Luka was very much running for his life at the moment.

"Alice...!"

He screamed.

"Alice...!"

The boy's head whipped back and forth searching the area until it landed on the lamia in the distance. Alice was sleeping while coiled around a tree.

"Help...! Help me...!"

"..."

As she woke up to the screaming boy's calls, Alice gave one good look at Luka.

And then nodded off.

"_Such a good dream..._"

"Oi! You just ignored me, didn't you...! Damn it...!"

The slug girl was still in hot pursuit, moving with a surprising speed across the grass.

"Where dost thee go...! Darling...!"

Finally reaching the area where he and Alice had set up camp, the boy dove for the sword on the ground. Unsheathing it, he turned around and pointed it at the monster girl.

She stopped giving chase.

"Okay! I don't want to fight you if I don't have too! Just tell me what you want with me!"

"...?"

The slug girl tilted her head.

"Shall I compare thee to a summer's day-"

"I rather you didn't."

Luka answered.

"..."

"If thou must knoweth..."

She broke character.

"Frankly, you smell nice. I want to keep you as a pet."

"..."

_I should have expected this..._

The boy sighed.

"Look... I have no intentions of being anyone's pet, so if you can respect that..."

…

…!

In a sudden turn, the slug girl's eyes darkened.

"But you oughta know! The thrill's in the hunt, aye!"

"Oi! You're accent's gone all funny!"

As a menacing air started to gather around the monster girl, Luka's palms started sweating.

..._Urk!_

_Looks like... I'll have to use force...!_

…

The boy took a breath.

His foot dug into the ground.

Taking the first step...

He made a cry.

"Ora!"

Luka's sword moved with his arm...!

And then!

…!

...

A dull sound.

"...Eh?"

It bounced off.

"..."

…

He tried again.

And the same effect...

"..."

"Ahn~! For master to induce this type of play, nyan~!"

The slug girl hugged herself in ecstasy... but then she immediately changed her tone to a darker one.

"But... I'd rather be 'S' than 'M'..."

"Oi! Stop changing your character so quickly...! Just pick one and stick with it...!"

And as he said this, he started making a run for it again. The chase began once more.

_W-What's this...! I got myself a weapon, and absolutely nothing has changed...! What the hell is Alice doing...!_

Luka's eyes darted back to the lamia...

And she was sprawled on the ground face down.

_Is she playing dead...! No wait, she's sleeping...?_

"Zzz...zzz..."

_Damn it...! Wake up already...!_

While running all around the camp, Luka's foot suddenly lost footing on the slug girl's slime trail.

"Hah...?"

A noise emitted from his mouth as he slipped and crashed into his tent.

And once again the monster girl stopped, but more out of concern for the boy's safety rather than her own.

…

"...?"

_Rustle..._

From inside the broken shelter...

A sinister laugh was heard...

"_Ha... ha ha..."_

Luka slowly stood up from the remains of the tent...

A wide grin formed on his face.

"That's right... that's right... I'm fighting a slug after all... _Ha... ha ha..._"

In reaction, the monster girl's expression paled in shock.

"It's like he's a completely different person!"

"You're one to talk...!"

The boy shouted.

"...Guh! Enough of this...! A slug's natural weakness should be salt, so in that case..."

Luka reached into the small bag he was now carrying.

"Begone...!"

…!

And the slug threw up her arms in defense as she was hit with bits of sodium chloride.

"Ah! It stings! Master is too cruel!"

She quickly slid off into the distance.

…

…

And so, in the battle between Luka and the slug girl, Luka had come out victorious!

Sort of...

"..."

* * *

><p>"Mmm..."<p>

Alice seemed displeased.

"..."

As the two were traveling, Luka was trying his best to ignore the lamia's glances.

"Mmm..."

"..."

She elbowed him in the rib.

"...Guh!"

"Oi."

"...W-What."

"Nothing."

"..."

They continued walking.

"..."

"Mmm..."

…

The boy let out a breath.

"Is there something troubling you?"

Luka asked in an almost pathetic way.

"Not really. But now that I think about it, yes."

"Ah, is that so."

"..."

…

The continued walking.

"Mmm..."

_Why is she being so roundabout...! Just say what it is already...!_

...

Luka submitted to her will again.

"...And what exactly is troubling you?

Alice looked up into the air.

"It's just that, you wasted quite a bit of salt back there."

_Oi...! You were awake...! Why didn't you help me then...!_

"Well, that's that and this is this."

_Don't ignore me, damn it...!_

"As a traveling gourmet, this is simply something I can't forgive."

"Traveling gourmet...? Wait, is that the reason you're traveling the world...?"

"Why...yes. Yes it is."

...

"...!"

And then it seemed like something clicked inside the lamia's head.

A dark smile spread across her face.

"Say, take a look at this book!"

She said, pulling out thick text seemingly out of nowhere. On it were the words: 'Traveling Guild's World Traveler Tour Guide'.

"This forbidden book contains everything about the human world. Geography, environment, food... it has it all!"

She continued.

"It's a book containing all the places to sight-see, including local delicacies and such. To adventurers, foodies, and sightseers, this book is legendary!"

Luka took a closer look.

_It looks old... More like... this book was published 500 years ago..._

_It's more like a history textbook now... I doubt it could be used as a traveling guide anymore..._

"With this tool at my disposal nothing can get in my way! I will be able to devour every single delicacy this world has to offer!"

As Alice started laughing, Luka almost felt sorry for her.

"Well, that's great and all, but for a gourmet, you seem to be plenty satisfied with downing all of my Hoshi meat. I don't see why you need to travel the world."

The lamia shrugged nonchalantly.

"I suppose this is the difference between a plebian and a gourmet. For you, something like Hoshi meat may seem a bit plain, but at least I am able to appreciate the seasons and spices that complement and infuse the meat with flavor."

_Oi oi. And just who do you think seasoned the meat in the first place...?_

"Though, it would've tasted better with more salt."

Luka grimaced.

_...and now we've come full circle._

"You. Where did you learn your technique? It's so horrible, it pains me to even watch."

"What are you saying, Alice... I've been training for more than five years..."

She furrowed her eyebrows in disappointment.

"Five years of flailing wildly...?"

"...Err, I learned it from pilgrims who came to visit the temple and I honed the different techniques into my own style..."

_I call it 'Luka's Arts'...! That name sounds like it would be pretty popular...!_

Alice did a face palm.

"Crappy skills learned from crappy people will be crappy even if combined..."

She sighed.

"Alright, for the sake of our cooking ingredients, I'll teach you a little."

_Hey, I was desperate back there, and... Wait, what...?_

"Hmm...? What is it now? You say things like 'I want to coexist with monsters' but aren't willing to train with one?"

"Umm... that's not what I meant..."

_No matter how you put it, a monster teaching a human how to defeat monsters is a bit..._

_..._

_Well, even then, I guess can't have any bias in my mind about this..._

_It's still strange though..._

_..._

"A-Alright..."

Hesitantly, Luka made a bow.

"Well... please... teach me then..."

"Okay then, let's start."

"..."

_...Hah? You mean... now?_

* * *

><p>"Right there, you need to use your feet as you swing your sword. Don't just use your arm strength. This way, you won't have to rely so much on brute strength."<p>

As Luka was training, Alice was giving advice.

"L...Like this...?"

The boy was maneuvering himself with more dexterity than before.

"Hm. Not bad... but not that great..."

"...Urk!"

Somehow, Alice had landed a blow on him without even touching him. Truly a fearsome technique.

"In any case, put that small body of yours to good use. Try charging towards me. And aim for my neck."

"...Huh?"

"Don't worry, I'll be fine."

"Well..."

_If that that's what she wants..._

For some reason, Luka felt no hesitation while attacking Alice.

It wasn't like he had any pent-up stress towards her...

For the most part...

"Ora!"

He dashed forward...!

…!

And then her tail shot towards his chest, knocking him to the floor.

"Good, good. Looks like you mastered it."

From the ground, the boy was recoiling in pain.

"Did I... Did I really master something...?"

The lamia ignored the boy's groans.

"'Demon Decapitation'. This is the best technique for someone of your size. It's said that the Dark Elf Zack was able to cut off the heads of 100 humans using that move."

"That's...! That's horrible...! Can't you teach me a more Hero like technique...?"

"Beggars can't be choosers. And besides, you've already learned it."

_That's... I guess that's right... But my image as a Hero..._

"Get up. We're practicing this move."

"Hah...?"

The training continued, whether he liked it or not.

* * *

><p>"Ah! Look! We're here!"<p>

Appearing at the main gates of a huge city, Alice took notice.

"...Where are we?"

…

Turning around, she saw Luka straggling behind.

"Oi, what's wrong with you?"

"..."

The boy's clothes her covered with dust and dirt, and he appeared to be using a stick to help him walk.

Surely, it must have been difficult to keep pace with a monster. Even more so after a training session which consisted of him being beat up.

"It's...nothing... Just a little tired, that's all..."

"Ah, okay then."

She turned back to the city.

"Oi! It's not okay, damn it!"

Luka threw the stick to the side.

"Do you know how tired I am...! Why'd we have to get here so damn fast...!"

The lamia plugged her ears with her fingers.

"Getting attacked my monsters, getting attacked by you, and practically running to Iliasburg all in the course of one day...! Just how much stamina do you think I have...!"

"...? Iliasburg?"

It seemed like all she heard was that last part.

Opening the 'World Traveler', she reached a page of interest.

"The Sutherland Inn at Iliasburg is known for their Happiness Honey Filled Ama-ama Dango..."

_Hey... I'm saying something here...!_

A dark look appeared on Alice's face.

"_Prepare youself, Ama-ama Dango..._"

As a sinister laugh seeped from her lips, Luka gave up on the situation.

_...Ugh._

He sighed.

"I don't know, Alice. That book is pretty old. I wouldn't bet that a hotel from 500 years ago would still be here."

"What are you saying? It's only been 500 years. I'm sure it's still there."

"..."

_I think humans and monster can coexist..._

_But it might be hard to get over the issue of time perception..._

The boy changed the subject.

"In any case, Alice, are you able to disguise yourself as a human?"

He asked.

"On this continent, the hatred against monsters is pretty strong, and I'm sure Iliasburg is no exception."

"...Ehh."

The lamia expressed distaste from the idea.

"Taking the form of a human is unpleasant... Why should I have to pretend to be human..."

"I just said it... There's a..."

"..."

"..."

The boy's eyes widened.

And his heart began to race.

"Wait..."

He looked around the city gates and back towards Alice.

"What are you doing-?"

Suddenly...!

Luka ran past the gates and into the city!

* * *

><p>Luka's steps echoed in the streets as he pressed forward.<p>

_I've only been to Iliasburg once before..._

A tense feel was filling the air

_The main street was filled with adventurers, merchants, and all sorts of people..._

_But now..._

The boy entered the main plaza.

It was completely devoid of life.

_What's going on...!_

It was like a ghost town. Shop stalls were still there, filled with all types of fruits and vegetables... But the people were gone. It was as if...

All the people had run away.

…

"..."

In that empty space, the boy stood in complete silence.

_Was it Alice...?_

_If that was the case, then we should have been greeted with soldiers at the front gate..._

_But..._

_..._

_Since they weren't there..._

_Were they summoned to another area...?_

_Does this mean..._

Luka heard footsteps.

But they weren't human.

…

_Beat._

His heart was pulsing from a tremendous sensation.

…

…

"How boring. Is there not a single strong person in this entire city?"

Arriving at the plaza was...

…

_Beat._

His instincts were telling him to run.

…

...

"So there's only you left, huh?"

A monster... and not just any monster...

…

_Beat._

Luka's eyes widened.

…

…

_A dragon swordswoman who wields a giant sword..._

_Even I have heard the rumors..._

_Able to stand up against an entire army by herself..._

_A killer of thousands..._

_An insanely strong monster only the insane would want to face..._

_That is..._

_One of the Four Heavenly Knights that serve under the Monster Lord..._

"Granberia..."

The boy uttered the name softly, as if it was a sin to say it.

…

_Beat._

The reason why there were no soldiers at the front gate was because they had been already disposed of.

…

…

Red hair and yellow eyes. The boy's gaze locked onto such a creature.

…

And she too had the boy in her sights.

_Beat._

…

…

She leaned her head back as she walked towards him.

"Are you just going to watch while I take control of this place?"

…

Luka didn't say a word.

_Beat._

…

…

She was getting closer.

"...Ohh? I guess I was mistaken then."

…

…

She was within breathing distance...

And the boy's legs were turning into jelly.

_Beat._

…

…

"That's a wise choice."

She passed him.

"I'd probably crush you like an insect, just like everyone else."

…

Sweat dripped across his face.

_Beat._

…

...

"But in the future, you can't call yourself a Hero, can you?"

…

"..."

…

…

Luka heard the footsteps soften as the distance between them grew.

"..."

…

Luka swallowed his breath.

He struggled to say something.

…

"I-"

…

Slowly, he turned around.

...

"I won't."

…

…

Granberia was directly in front of him.

"...!"

Her stance was poised to strike.

"You better not regret those words, _boy_."

Luka barely had any time to pull out his sword. And what followed was a resounding sound of steel on steel.

_Clash!_

Granberia's sword scraped against Luka's, deterring it from it's main point of focus. The boy had come too close from being skeward.

"...kuu."

But the dragon grinned.

Luka was forced to step back as Granberia swept her blade.

And she quickly made another thrust.

This time, she was dead on.

Taking the blow head on with the middle of his sword, Luka slid back from the sheer force.

His arm was trembling from the power of her strikes. His grip was loosening. He couldn't take much more of this.

_Is this... what it's like to fight a monster...?_

The boy looked up to meet the dragon's dangerous expression. What was there was not blood lust, but thrill. She was thoroughly enjoying her time with him. And in the end, she wasn't even serious at all.

"Horahora...!"

Granberia jumped in, not even caring to strike the boy's body anymore. Impacting the boy's blade with every thrust, Luka was being pushed back.

"Don't disappoint me now, _boy_!"

He couldn't dodge. He couldn't attack. All he could do was guard.

"Is this all that you're worth!"

In front of such strength, it was like all of his training was meaningless.

Luka was cracking from this impossible fight.

"You can't be giving up now, right...?"

For a brief moment, Granberia paused her barrage of attacks, however...

Her sword dove into the ground underneath his feet.

…!

Dirt and dust exploded into the air, and bits of stone and rubble shot upwards towards her target. Luka was thrown off the floor.

"Ugh...!"

The boy landed on his back a few feet from where he once was. His own sword lay beside him.

And...

Granberia looked down on him as he struggled to get up.

"Where's the confidence that you had? Did you lose it?"

She was demon.

Truly, she lived up to her reputation as one of the Monster Lord's Heavenly Knights.

…

However...

The boy bit his lip...

As he reached for his sword and stood on his feet...

His stance was uneven.

His palms were sweaty.

His opponent was unbeatable.

But...

Luka had a determined look in her eye.

It was almost like...

He was going to stop her even if it meant dying.

…

…

And Granberia frowned.

"You're starting to annoy me, _boy._"

Her condescending tone didn't change, but it seemed like she was getting bored with the situation.

...

"..."

...a sudden thought.

Grinning again with wild expression, it seemed like she took delight in the idea she just thought up of.

"How about we make things more even?"

Taking her weapon, she struck it into the ground, splitting the earth easily as if it wasn't made of solid rock.

"I'll let you get one good strike on me. I won't even use my sword to block."

She opened her arms towards him in kindness.

"That's very generous of me, wouldn't you say?"

But her eyes darkened afterwards.

"Make sure you give it your all, _boy._ Because afterwards..."

She growled.

"_I'll be giving my best as well_."

…

Why Granberia hadn't murdered him then and there, he didn't know.

However, he was given a ray of hope.

Despite the huge gap in power...

Luka's inexperience in sword play...

And his worsening condition as the battle continued...

She was underestimating him.

He still had a card to play.

_I... can still use that move...!_

_No, I'll have to use it...!_

_Even if I just learned it, I have no choice...!_

These were the thoughts of a boy desperate to win.

Even faced with impossible odds, as long as there was hope, he would chase after it.

Even if his body was bloodied and worn, he'd reach out his hand for the chance...

Because...

That was the kind of hero he wanted to be.

…

Gritting his teeth, he ran forward.

Screaming...

He gave it his all.

Just like Granberia wanted.

And then...!

[Demon Decapitation!]

…!

…

A rush of air swirled around the area as the two clashed. However...

Luka had nothing to do with this...

…

Granberia had the blade between her claws.

…

"Tch..."

She clicked her tongue.

Luka's expression went from rage to horror.

There was no hope after all.

In the end, it was all useless.

...

_I..._

Ilias had abandoned him.

…

_I failed..._

…

…

"You..."

The dragon spoke with a dead tone.

"That was a monster technique, wasn't it?"

"..."

"Where did you learn it?"

If answering her question meant that he would live, any man would have answered it.

However, Luka...

...

His expression changed.

"I..."

...

"I don't have to tell you anything."

"..."

She clicked her tongue again.

Unknowingly to Luka, she had changed goals. No longer was she 'having fun'. This was the end of their 'fair fight'.

The dragon increased the pressure between her fingers...

And his sword snapped like twig.

With no time to react, Granberia extended her other arm and grabbed the boy's collar. Holding him high in the air, she threw him to the side with an incomprehensible force.

Luka rolled across cobblestone, scraping his hands and knees in the process.

He couldn't stop.

Flesh ruptured and seared as he slid into a nearby building with sickening thud.

He couldn't get up.

There was nothing he could do anymore.

…

Casually, Granberia walked up to him.

And placed her foot on the his torso.

"I held back to make sure you didn't die. Are you going to talk now?"

Luka felt the dragon shift her weight.

"Or am I going to have spill your guts."

Slowly, Granberia started pressuring him.

His lungs were being compressed. His breathing had become short and stunted.

"..."

…

"Still not saying anything, _boy_."

She increased pressure again. This time, his ribcage felt like it was going to snap.

He was suffocating under her weight.

"I'm giving you one last chance."

"..."

…

Exactly what was he doing? Was he protecting her?

No. He had no reason to.

Was it pride?

This boy already knew that pride was worthless to a dead man.

Then...

There was... another reason.

In Luka's eyes, the look of determination remained, though it wasn't as noble as before.

"..."

…

"Tch."

She clicked her tongue.

"You really do annoy me, _boy_."

…

More pressure.

Luka started choking as he found himself unable to breathe anymore.

His body reacted, convulsing to bring back equilibrium, but Granberia had him pinned down.

…

"..."

…

He was losing consciousness, and Granberia was watching the life drain out of him.

At this rate, he really was going to die.

...

…

But...

…

Fading in and out...

…

A figure...

…

He didn't know if he had any breath left to say anything, and he was too out of it to notice any words that may have escaped from his mouth...

But if he did manage to say something, surely, it must have sounded like garbled English.

_A... l... ce..._

* * *

><p>As the boy's eyes refocused, he found himself looking at a ceiling.<p>

Feeling the texture of soft satin sheets, he became aware of his new surroundings.

…

The boy spoke up quietly.

"_Where... am I..._"

…

While he didn't see her...

He knew that she was sitting nearby.

It was obvious.

At least to him anyway.

...

"Sutherland Inn."

…

He made a small laugh.

"_So... I see you found it..._"

…

…

…

…

Silence.

The boy wanted to speak up again...

But...

He couldn't.

…

The monster girl spoke up in his stead.

"I talked Granberia out of taking over the city. So this place should be safe for now."

…

This statement should have raised more questions, but Luka passed on them.

"_I see._"

…

…

…

…

As time started to sift painfully, Luka didn't know what to say. In an important battle, he had lost. And he had lost pathetically too. After proclaiming to be a hero, claiming he would be the one to defeat the Monster Lord, telling her that he would change the world's order...

Just how was he supposed to face her after losing like that?

…

Luka was in pain...

And it wasn't just from his wounds...

…

…

Even so... he needed to say something to her.

The boy uttered a useless phrase that could only scratch the surface of how he truly felt.

However, he knew it was better than saying nothing.

...

"_Thank you..._"

...

…

Wood was creaking.

She had started moving.

"It's been a long day. You should rest now."

Luka heard the sound of a door closing.

"..."

The boy closed his eyes.

And went back to sleep.

* * *

><p><em>Ever so slowly, Luka treads the difficult path to become a hero. He still has a lot to learn, but inside, he knows what's important.<em>

_This is only the beginning of his adventure._

END

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: For VN readers, I've realized that the majority of the monsters Luka fights pretty much has the same personality, which is pretty much like "I'm so **** right now, I'm gong to **** you so hard you'll **** and **** - " and so on. So I had to change it. The slug girl was an experiment of original personality creation, which I found to be alright. I particularly wanted to end on the Granberia fight so as to set up events for the next 'event', so I may have sped through this a bit. And even so, it still feels like a long chapter.

For everyone else, don't worry about the source material. Just enjoy the story.

And I should also mention I re-edited the first chapter somewhat...

TL;DR:

Luka fights slug.

Luka learns his first technique.

Luka loses to dragon.


	3. Chapter 3: The Four Bandits

**The story so far**: The brave adventurer Luka, in his efforts to bring peace between the two races of humans and monsters, resolves to defeat the Monster Lord who has declared war on all humanity. After failing to receive the blessing of protection from the Goddess Ilias as well as the proper title of a 'Hero', he sets out to defeat the Monster Lord despite the setback. On his journey, a lamia known to him as Alice decides to accompany him for various reasons.

Arriving at the city of Iliasburg, Luka finds it to be under attack. There he suffers defeat in a one-sided battle against one of the Monster Lord's Heavenly Knights, Granberia, who has come to lay siege on the town. But before the final blow, he is saved by Alice's interference.

With the battle for Iliasburg now over, what awaits next for Luka?

This adventure is only beginning.

* * *

><p>"<em>Thank you! If you hadn't arrived when you did, this place would've become a monster city!"<em>

"_That was amazing! Just how did you drive away such a strong looking monster...!"_

"_Ah! Please! Can you sign this for me? It's for my daughter!"_

…

Alice was marching down the streets of Iliasburg with a haughty expression on her face.

"It seems like I've become somewhat famous recently, haven't I? I'm no different than an idol!"

"…"

Although Luka was walking beside her, he seemed virtually nonexistent.

"Yeah... I guess you have..."

There was a disparity of emotion distributed between the two.

"_Hahahaha!_ That's right! That's right, isn't it! Who knew that humans could be so easy to please! All I did was spare one small city, and yet they're all over me!"

Making a thoughtful pose...

"This might be bad. This feeling is pretty intoxicating. Perhaps I should seriously consider turning myself into a Hero... not."

"..."

She laughed again. But settling down, she pulled out a skewer and began munching on an Ama-ama Dango. Of course, this delicacy from Sutherland Inn was given to her for free.

Alice touched her cheek affectionately.

"_It's sweet~! Better than I expected~!_"

The 'monster girl' nudged Luka's side.

"Say, did you know this Ama-ama Dango is filled with a special type of honey?"

Pulling out the 'World Traveler' guidebook, she quickly paraphrased.

"'_Happiness Honey_' is what it's called. Apparently it's made from a place called _'Happiness Village_', a small beekeeping village to the east of here."

Taking the boy to the side, she made a serious expression.

"It's a priority that we make a visit."

"What do you think I am, a tourist...?"

"_Tch_."

Alice clicked her tongue but afterwards caught a whiff of something.

…

…?

"...Oh!"

She sparkled as she gravitated towards one of the town's various food vendors.

_Seriously...! She's eating more food...!-?_

The boy did his best to smile despite his irritation.

…

Luka was becoming exhausted...

Heaving a sigh, he waited until Alice was done with her 'business'.

And...

He snuck a glance at his comrade.

Currently, she was in human form which allowed her to walk freely amongst the people of Iliasburg.

It was a major departure from the monster state Luka was used to seeing, so he soaked in the image.

Her silver hair clashed with her rosy skin. A set of slim and shapely legs replaced the tail that usually inhabited the lower part of her body. And though her clothes were unchanged, her human form made it more apparent that she was leaving a lot bare for all the townsfolk to admire. This all created the image of an 'exotic' type of woman.

_Back then..._

Remembering the day before...

_She said she stopped Granberia from attacking the city... Exactly, what does that even mean...?_

_Is she a close friend...? Or... Could it be that she's really powerful...? Even more powerful than one of the Monster Lord's Heavenly Knights...?_

He eyed the joyous 'girl' suspiciously as she floated around from stall to stall at almost inhuman speeds.

…

The boy just didn't know what to think of her.

…

Continuing on...

"Even if you stare at me like that, I'm not going to share."

Currently, Alice had a some kind of fried cake protruding from her mouth.

"I wasn't asking."

* * *

><p>A bell chimed as Luka stepped inside a dimly lit building. All over the walls, swords, axes, and lances made their presence known with their polished surfaces and sickly sharp edges. These weapons ranged in size, from hidden blades small enough to fit inside a person's sleeve to massive hunks of metal that trained monster hunters could use to battle dinosaurs-like beings.<p>

At this time, Luka didn't need anything that fancy.

"What's this now? I'm honestly impressed. I suppose humans can be quite clever when it comes to crafting tools of self-mutilation."

Luka nudged her side.

"_Stop that._"

And at that, Alice looked up into the air with an expression of discontent.

…

The boy immediately went towards a bin filled with generic looking swords. The reason, of course, was to replace the sword he lost from the previous day. Reaching his hand out...

He noticed that the bandages wrapped around his forearm were starting to fray...

…

…

…

Being thrown across cobblestone...

And almost literally being crushed like an insect...

…

…

…

The boy ended his thoughts before he could get too far.

There was no use sulking now.

…

…

Luka let out a breath.

"This can't be happening... Even the bargain bin is out of my budget? C'mon! Why is everything around here so expensive?"

From behind the counter, the Shopkeeper addressed his situation.

"Blame nature. Storms at sea have halted all trade with the outside world, and with minerals like iron hard to come by on this continent, what we have here is all we've got. In order to keep this place up and running, I've got no choice but to raise price."

"Is that so..."

The boy scanned the various price tags floating about.

_This isn't good... I might have to deal with being unarmed for a while..._

…

"Of course, if you have something of value..."

The shopkeeper eyed the ring on Luka's hand.

"A discount isn't out of the question."

The boy promptly moved it out of his field of vision.

"That... That isn't necessary."

…

Luka stepped back.

Browsing the walls and floor for anything that he could protect himself with that was also within his price range... he eventually had to give up...

"I kind of feel bad for coming all the way here and not buying anything... But there's little I can do about it..."

"What about this?"

Looking to the side, he saw Alice holding up a plain looking shirt.

"We have enough money to buy this, right?"

The shopkeeper spoke up once again.

"Huh? That shirt? Oh, you can have it."

"...?"

The boy did a double take.

_What about staying in business...!_

"Well, it's true that the shirt she's holding is a good piece of protective wear... it's actually woven in a way that won't rip or tear easily... but nowadays what's trendy with Heroes isn't function. It's all about fashion. Something as plain looking as that simply won't sell at all."

"..."

Luka reluctantly took his offer.

"...Thanks, I guess."

The shopkeeper continued.

"I suppose it's a shame. If only Enrika made their stuff a bit more flashy..."

"Enrika?"

"Hmm? Enrika is the name of a small village to the southwest. Even though they isolate themselves from the rest of the world, they make some pretty good pieces of armor."

"I see."

_Enrika, huh? I'll keep that village in mind._

Before heading out, the boy put the newly acquired shirt in his pack.

* * *

><p>Finished with shopping, the two started to head out of the city. Alice was reading her 'World Traveler' guide gook as she walked.<p>

"It says here that the Happiness Honey from Happiness Village is absolutely amazing! If we go there, we'll be making steady progress."

"_Oi, oi! My goal is to defeat the Monster Lord! I'm not traveling the world just to sightsee!_ I can't be bothered with doing an unnecessary sidequest!"

"Tch."

The boy sighed and pulled out his map.

"For the quickest path to the Monster Lord's Castle... We should probably head towards Iliasport and take a boat to the Sentora continent..."

"...Iliasport?"

Alice raised an eyebrow. She recalled.

"Ilias Village, Iliasburg, and now Iliasport... These aren't exactly creative names."

"Hey now..."

Luka raised his voice to say something, but…

"You have a point..."

…

The perspective changed... Backing further out...

( "Still... It's nothing to make fun of..." )

Both Luka and Alice slid into the background as their conversation continued.

"_Fufufu..._"

A laugh emitted from an unknown source.

Suddenly...!

The sound of rapid footsteps...!

_Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step! Step!_

Rushing towards the boy erratically, tilting and shaking unevenly...!

"I FOUND YOOUU...!"

Luka jumped back at the sudden appearance!

Appearing before him was...!

"MY ONE! MY ONLY...!"

…

…

Unfortunate Lamia had arrived.

"MY HEEEEROOOO~!"

"..."

…

Luka stood silently.

"The true heroine Amira has finally made it to the scene...! And you...!"

Spinning in place, the creature did a 'cutesy' pose.

"Have stolen my maiden heart~!"

"..."

…

Luka stayed silent.

"Filling me with love and courage! Ah~ My poor, sweet heart! Emotion overflowing~! I can't possibly bear!"

"…"

…

Amira was gushing with love and affection.

"An unbreakable dream~ Sparkling like the sun~! _Claire de Lune~ Mon Amie_! Bang Bang~ Zukyuuuun~!"

…

…

…

In the back of his mind, a switch had been flipped.

"_I can't take it anymore, this is my limit._"

"...?"

The boy raised his head and looked down at the creature before him.

"Unable to receive my baptism, even if there's some plan by Ilias...

Bearing this abusive traveling partner who calls herself such an unfitting name as Alice...

Having to face an end-game level boss right at the start...

Okay... I can handle all that...

But...

But... 'this'...

But... this... 'thing'...

I don't know anymore. I just don't know. I've hit my limit."

"..."

He smiled kindly.

"Excuse me... Can I kill you?"

"...!"

Just as Luka stepped forward, Alice put a hand on his shoulder.

"I know how you feel, but you need to calm down. If you want a world where monsters and humans can coexist, it would include that 'thing' too."

The boy jumped to the side in a frenzy.

"But look at it! There's no way I can let this sort of 'thing' live! I have to do it! For the good of everyone!"

"You're so mean! You keep calling me a '_thing'_ like I'm a complete abomination to monster genetics!"

"_That's exactly what you are...!_"

"But... haven't you noticed yet...?

Amira addressed something missing.

"The author has completely left off my description! The readers don't have a clear depiction of what I look like! In fact, I could appear as a sexy brunette with C-cup breasts to them!"

"_Why are you bringing that up! That's a lie! That's a complete lie! Don't listen to her!"_

The Unfortunate Lamia dropped to her knees and wept.

"Ah... Why do you discriminate against me...?

Everyone else does this too... Everyone throws stones at me... Nobody will get close to me... Not wanted by anyone... Such sadness... Forever alone..."

_Just go and disappear already...!_

"Hey! Amira!"

An old woman called out to her.

"Come by and have some lunch later! We'll share stories!"

A man noticed her presence and approached her.

"Oh, Amira. There are some rats in my warehouse. Would you mind helping me get rid of them?"

_Why is everyone acting so naturally here...! Why is no one alarmed at the sight of a monster in the city...!_

"Alice, this thing just keeps getting more annoying. Can you drive it away like you did to Granberia?"

"Don't rely on me, idiot. Don't think I'll keep helping you."

"...Nnn!"

Amira spoke up once more.

"Well, putting my situation aside, I came to profess more than just my love for you. I also have a request."

Piquing the boy's interest...

"A request...?"

"A band of monster thieves have been causing trouble nearby. And having fellow monsters do such things... It pains my heart. And everyone else in town is troubled too.

Even though my appearance has quite the impact... my attacks don't. Could you do something in my stead?"

Luka seemed skeptical.

"Band of thieves...? I'd imagine there'd be more panic in the city if this was true. Are you sure this isn't a human scare mongering story?"

"Please don't insult my information gathering skills. There's even supposed to be a vampire and a dragon within the group."

Alice reacted.

"This far into the countryside...?"

..._Eh? A vampire...? And a dragon...! Why are such high level monster here...!_

_Well... I say that, but Granberia attacked the city just yesterday..._

"Please, Hero! Can you bring justice to these bandits? I beg of you!"

"..."

Amira looked up to the boy. And she slowly started invading his personal space.

"..."

Drawing closer...

"...I... I get it. I'll do it. Just back off."

"Yay~! As expected from the man I love~!"

The unfortunate lamia gushed and started rubbing against him.

"Stop that!"

Interjecting...

"Really? Are you serious?"

Alice didn't seem enthused with this development.

"Well, I can't allow monsters to be harming humans without reason. Allowing one side to do evil on another goes against peaceful coexistence."

She frowned. Eloquently speaking...

"I suspect that there is something odd with dragons and vampires being on this continent; however I have to point out that you're not at a level to be able to fight against such high level beings. Or did you not learn anything from yesterday?"

"..."

"Don't confuse bravery with stupidity. It's not related to the Monster Lord, so let it pass."

...

Amira turned her head back and forth between the two.

"It's true that I'm not that strong... But I can't turn my back on someone in need..."

Luka explained himself

"Look, I'm not trying to be brave or anything... It's just... It's something that a Hero would do."

"_And you're getting yourself involved because... why?_"

Alice provoked him.

The boy held back from sounding angry. He reminded her the point of his journey.

"Because... I **am **a Hero."

"...A fake one."

…

…

Luka was struck with a heavy blow.

Even so... he turned his attention to Amira.

"Alright. Just... Just tell me where the thieves' hideout is and leave it to me."

"Ahhh, as I expected from my darling!"

Hearing Alice click her tongue again, Luka decided to ignore it.

* * *

><p>Outside of Iliasburg... Alice and Luka were walking side by side. Alice had reverted back to her monster form, though Luka didn't make any mention of it.<p>

"Do you hold some kind of a death wish?"

The lamia asked.

"Not particularly."

"..."

…

Alice stopped and sighed. And in turn, the boy looked back to see what she was up to.

"I really can't see the point of this.

If you want to throw your life away, by all means go ahead. But don't drag me along to watch something so boring. There isn't even any food where we're heading either."

_...Is that really all it comes down to? Food?_

"I'll be staying back."

She continued.

"But being as pathetic as you are and being as kind as I am, here. Now, you at least have a weapon."

From out of thin air, Alice pulled out a sword.

"..."

"Go on. Take it."

"..."

Luka hesitated.

"I appreciate the thought, but... Alice... What the hell is that?"

"The name of the sword is [ Angel Halo ]. It's the only one of its kind. It's very valuable."

"What happened to it? The thing looks downright evil."

The gross-looking sword gave off a dull glimmer while in the sun.

"Holding that would be like shouting '_Hey! I'm a bad guy!'_' to everyone."

"Hmm? Really? I'd figure you'd be happy with the design. It even has those angels you humans adore embedded on the handle."

"_Ueeeee..._"

Luka stepped back.

"Wha-! Did that thing just moan...!"

"It's to be expected. The sword was refined from 666 melted angles, after all."

"_Is that supposed to make me feel better about it...!_"

Alice pouted.

"If you don't want it, there's no need to be rude about it."

"No, I didn't mean anything ill with what I just said..."

Reluctantly he pushed himself.

"I'll... I'll take it. Thank you Alice."

As Luka grabbed the handle of the blade, he could've sworn one of the embedded angels mouthed out '_Help me_'. He decided to ignore it.

"I'll be at the hotel. If you don't come back, I'll assume you're dead and start traveling on my own."

…

The boy watched as the lamia slid back to Iliasburg.

"...It shouldn't take that much effort to say 'good luck'."

* * *

><p>After a fair bit of walking...<p>

Luka stood at the base of a mountain. Looking up towards the peak, he spoke aloud to no one in particular...

"Amira said it was around this area, but... where do I go from here?"

The boy surveyed the location and noticed a small girl in the distance.

"...?"

He approached her from behind.

"Hey there!"

He picked up his pace. Drawing closer, he started to notice she wasn't exactly human.

"..."

The goblin girl stood firmly with her feet planted on the ground. With a hammer that was way too big for her at her side, she gazed into the horizon.

"..."

"Hello...?"

"Shush! I'm concentrating here!"

…

From the situation alone, it was impossible to know what she meant by that.

"Concentrating...?"

"It's obvious, isn't it! I'm on the lookout for any humans or would-be Heroes that might come by this spot! Can't be letting them get the upper hand now!"

…

"You mean... someone like me...?"

Turning, the goblin girl stared at Luka blankly.

"..."

She then jumped back and pointed.

"Human!"

"..."

Luka made no reaction.

"_Ara...? What is it that I'm supposed to do now...? Umm... let's see..._"

She briefly turned her back to the boy to settle her thoughts. Eventually, she turned around again.

"That's right!"

The goblin girl was brimming with confidence.

"You've done well to make it this far! But this is where your adventure ends! This 'Goblin Bandit of the Earth' shall be your opponent!"

The weak-looking girl picked up her hammer and made a rush towards him.

"[Earth Crashing Goblin!]"

Yelling out her attack, the girl raised her weapon high into the air...!

…

And tripping over a rock, she crashed into the earth.

"Ugyaa!"

"..."

…

…

…

The monster girl lifted her head which was now tarnished with dirt.

"A-As expected from a Hero! To think that your aura alone would make me fall to my knees!"

"..."

Picking herself up...

"This isn't the end!"

She yelled.

"There are three more even more powerful than me!"

She retreated towards a nearby cave.

"..."

And so, in the battle between Luka and the goblin, Luka had become victorious...!

Sort of...

"..._Huh?"_

The boy wasn't exactly sure what just happened.

"..."

While standing in place, a part of him wondered if it would be alright to leave.

"T-Three more...!"

The goblin girl's voice came again.

"There are three more, so..."

Turning his head towards the cave, Luka saw that the monster girl had popped her head out, but she immediately withdrew herself.

"..."

"I guess... I should follow..."

* * *

><p>Luka arrived at the entrance of the cave.<p>

( "Is he really going to come?" )

( "He's here! He's here!" )

( "Everyone! Get in your place!" )

"..."

Somehow, the boy didn't feel excited about this. He spoke up half-heartedly.

"Hey..."

"..."

…!

Suddenly feeling a presence! The cave shook with a slight tremor! Bits of dust and rock fell from the ceiling of the den! And the voice of a monster bellowed from the depths of darkness!

"Ah... so you came...

But blindly heading into your own defeat...

You humans can be so foolish!"

From within the shadows... the enemy exposed herself!

"I shall be your next opponent! Lamia Bandit of the Water has arrived!"

…

The tiny lamia, who stood at less than half Luka's height, laughed in supremacy.

"..."

"_Sha~ Shasha~ _Don't you want me to coil around you?"

She swung her tail happily from side to side.

"..."

"Why do you look so disappointed...!-? How can you have that face when facing me...!-?"

"Sorry."

"Tch! Making fun of me...!"

Leaping out...!

The tiny lamia latched herself to Luka's leg!

"Heeheehee...! I'll squeeze you plenty! Wrapped by my powerful tail, you've already become my prey...!"

"..."

"I won't let you go, even you scream in agony!"

The boy reached down and peeled her off.

"Up you go."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Held up into the air, the tiny lamia's eyes started to well up.

"Wha... W-Why...! Why didn't it work!-?"

"Why...? Well... It's because you're weak, isn't it...?"

Luka said, placing her back on the ground.

"W-What...!"

"..."

Backing up...

"Tha... That's impossible...!"

She slid back even more.

"That's wrong! That's completely wrong!"

Biting her lip...

"W-What do you know! You idiot!"

The boy watched as the monster girl slid off with tears in her eyes.

"I'll show you! I'll... I'll definitely remember this...!"

"..."

And so, in the battle between Luka and the tiny lamia, Luka had become victorious...!

Sort of...

"Should I... keep going...?"

* * *

><p>"Ku ku ku... You have done well to be able to defeat Earth Goblin and Water Lamia! I congratulate you!"<p>

Luka was now facing a small twin-tailed vampire girl. She laughed as she swung her mantle around.

"However! Vampire Bandit of the Wind shall now feast on you- Ara?"

Luka bent down and picked her up.

"Huh? What? I-I wasn't done talking...! Put me down...!"

"Ah, sorry..."

Putting her back down, the boy asked a question.

"Say, I was told that a band of thieves had their hideout in this area. By any chance, is the next person I'm going to meet a dragon?"

"Huh? How did you know...?"

"..."

"...!"

The tiny vampire girl quickly covered her face with her cape.

"Ah, what I meant to say is...! Umm...! I-I see that you've heard of our treacherousness! The Four Bandits have truly become global...!"

"..."

Luka vaguely became aware of the situation he was in.

"So let me ask you! Do the residents of Iliasburg cower in fear? They surely must be after we've pillaged their apples, plundered their honey, and pilfered their culinary utensils!"

She looked at him expectantly.

"Yeah... they're, uh... mildly troubled..."

_That actually doesn't sound too bad... Rather, I bet these guys were just hungry..._

"Ku ku ku... Of course they are!"

Swinging her mantle around...

"But enough talk! Have at you!"

The boy used his fist to punch the top of her head.

"_Iyaaaaaaa!_"

And he left her wailing on the floor in defeat.

Luka was victorious...!

* * *

><p>Heading further into the cave... darkness increased to a point where it was starting to get troublesome...<p>

"I've defeated three of four bandits so far. So where's the fourth one..."

The boy squinted his eyes in order to try and see clearer...

"..."

A dragon pup stood directly in front of him.

"Hiya! Let's fight!"

_So direct...!_

"You're Dragon Bandit of the Fire, is that right?"

"Yup! Let's fight!"

"..."

…

…

The boy shrugged.

Having met with the other three, he had gotten used to the setup. He let out a breath before their match began.

"Alright then. Let's make this fast."

As Luka took a step forward...

Scattered embers brightened the area as the dragon pup shot flames from her mouth. The boy was temporarily blinded...!

"...!"

Light and heat blared right in front of him. Luka managed to step back enough from being seriously torched, but his arm was caught.

"Ah! Hot! Hot! Hot!"

The boy waved his arm as it lit up. He tore off his sleeve before it turned into ash.

All the while...

The dragon pup charged straight at him!

Luka caught a glimpse before she pounced right onto his shoulder. With the added weight, he instinctively put a foot behind himself in order to keep his balance.

"..._chhhhh_!"

And that was the sound of her biting into him.

The boy's eyes widened as a sensation of pain exploded in his right shoulder.

"...!"

He immediately pushed her off, but the monster girl was quick to pick herself up. She laughed as she distanced herself from him.

"Wahahaha! I'm may not look it, but I'm actually pretty strong!"

"..."

The boy grimaced.

_Damn that hurt!_

He looked towards the dragon girl, who's slick smile was illuminated by the remaining flames left over from her first attack. She swayed her body in an almost playful manner.

He then made a grab for the spot where she had bitten.

"..."

It was moist, but it didn't seem like there was any blood...

However...

He noticed his bandages were unraveling...

…

…

…

…

The boy's eyes darkened.

_That's right... Even if she's small, she's still a dragon..._

…

…

The boy grabbed onto the hilt of [Angel Halo].

…

…

_This is a fight between a valiant Hero and a fire-breathing dragon. Well, not really, but... _

_I'll need to finish this with my best shot... _

_I can't hesitate now._

…

…

The dragon pup prepared for a second round.

Luka poised himself to strike.

…

…

…!

They both ran at each other at the same time...!

Reaching the point of intersection...!

…

A flash!

…

"Rock! Paper!"

Luka shouted!

"Huh? What? S-Scissors!"

The dragon pup stopped in her tracks and pulled out scissors.

Luka had his fist in rock.

"..."

…

"I..."

…

The dragon girl sunk to her knees.

"_I looooooossst!_"

"..."

…

Not sure what had come over him, Luka looked at his hand.

"...I won."

…

This ending wasn't exactly the heroic image he had hoped for... But...

He couldn't help but feel relieved.

The cries of the dragon pup filled the air.

The boy smiled weakly.

_I guess... Even if she's a dragon... She's still just a kid..._

"_Uuuuuuuu~_"

The dragon pup continued her wailing within the dying embers. It seemed like she didn't take losing, in any type of battle, too well. The boy was starting to feel sorry for her...

…

Suddenly appearing...

"What? Why are you crying?"

The goblin girl came into the scene. Followed by...

"You! Why are you being so mean!"

The vampire girl, who hissed at Luka.

"Stop bullying her...!"

The tiny lamia joined the group.

"Go away!"

"Idiot!"

"Moron!"

"Loser!"

"Idiot!"

…

"You guys..."

Luka pulled out his fist.

[ sfx: BAM! POP! POW! ]

After the display of cartoon-like noises, the four girls were on their knees. Little bumps on the top of their heads could be seen as they knelt down

"**We're sorry**."

…

The boy sighed.

"I guess this means I defeated Four Bandits. Or... is this one of those instances where there's actually a secret fifth member...?"

He shot an unkind glance.

"Err! No... there are only four of us. We could only find four..."

The dragon pup responded while wiping away some of her tears. Her voice cracked as she continued...

"Please... Don't eat us!"

"Or kill us!"

"Or sell us!"

"Or violate us!"

"..."

"Oi, what exactly do you think a Hero does..."

Luka rubbed his temple.

"In any case, I'm taking the four of you to Iliasburg so you can apologize. You may have only stolen some apples and honey, but stealing is still stealing...! You caused them a lot of trouble, do you understand?"

"..."

…

The four girls fell silent. They uncomfortably fidgeted at the idea.

"But..."

The tiny lamia spoke up.

"Humans can be scary... They'll hate us... They might even throw rocks..."

She looked down towards the floor.

"I don't... want to be treated like that..."

…

…

…

Luka let out a breath. Walking over to the tiny lamia, he bent down...

And punched the top of her head.

"_Iyaaaaaaa!_"

"Don't be an idiot! It's thoughts like those that make coexistence difficult!"

Standing back up...

"There's this Amira thing that's able to live in that city somehow, so maybe they don't hate monsters all that much."

The four girls reacted.

"_**Only 'maybe'...!**_"

Luka continued.

"But, if anything does happen, I'll protect you. As a Hero, I'll take responsibility."

"..."

…

In a sense...

What he said there might've been pretty cool...

But... it's not like the girls were impressed... probably...

"..."

…

Each monster girl turned to each other and nodded reluctantly.

"...We'll go."

* * *

><p><em>Thus me and the four monsters headed to Iliasburg. Dragging them all around town to apologize, I honestly felt like their parent...<em>

_While some residents were opposed to forgive them at first, eventually ( thankfully ) they warmed up._

"_I saw them a few times, and I thought they might be kids... I guess it was true."_

"_It seems like they're sorry, why not forgive them? They must have it hard, too..."_

"_These bandits really didn't do much."_

"_Hey dragon, you can breathe fire, right? If you can, I'll give you a job."_

"_Hey goblin girl, you look pretty strong. Do you want to work in the warehouse?"_

_It looks like they're accepting the monster girls! I guess it'll be alright after all!_

"Alright! Happy ending!"

Luka raised his hands in celebration.

"_Fumu_... that's unexpected. So these humans were able to accept monsters...?"

"Gah...! Alice! Since when were you here!"

Alice currently stood beside the boy with a mouthful of fried bread. She turned towards Luka with a dark smile.

"I never left."

He felt a shiver down his spine.

"But... as I thought. You really are an interesting boy."

"Somehow, I don't think I can take that as a compliment."

…

There was a relative feeling of peace in the air. The two stood in the center of the plaza, the same scene where a fruitless battle had taken place. Now, it was crowded with people who were living out their daily lives, as if the day before was just a bad dream.

Looking up into the sky, Luka spoke...

"Things wouldn't have gone so smoothly back in Ilias Village... My hometown holds a deep prejudice, it would have gotten violent..."

The images of rocks being thrown flashed through his mind.

"I thought Iliasburg would be worse, but..."

Closing his eyes.

"I'm glad I was wrong."

…

Feeling someone tugging on his shirt...

He opened his eyes to see the dragon pup from before.

"Thank you! That is... something we all wanted to say...!"

She smiled and quickly ran away. She disappeared into the crowd before he could get a word in.

…

"...Huh?"

In his hand, there was now a valuable looking stone. A [ Red Orb ].

"That is..."

The lamia in human form looked somewhat surprised.

"Do you know what this is, Alice?"

"..."

She turned her head up.

"Nope."

"Stingy."

"But having an idiot like you hold on to it probably won't hurt anyone. Just think of it as a good luck charm."

"If that's what you say..."

…

The boy decided not to push her on the subject. Instead, he stretched his arms out into the air.

"Since everything is done here, let's head out! The Monster Lord's castle is waiting...!"

"Before that though..."

Alice gave another suggestion.

"How about taking another sidequest and offering the Monster Lord some Happiness Honey?"

"..."

* * *

><p><strong>AN**: And so, after a long time, I did an update. There's been a lot of positive feedback on this fic, so I almost felt like I 'needed' to do it. Well, I say that, but I actually enjoyed adapting the story with my own little twists. For people who have played the VN, in regards to [ Angel Halo ], I decided to not to go into details about its attributes. And, looking at the chapter, I may not be clear on it, but Luka keeps wearing his normal shirt throughout the Four Bandits Arc and eventually changes outfits ( since it gets burnt up ), though this is just a minor detail. Oh and FORESHADOWING. FORESHADOWING EVERYWHERE.

For non-VN readers, ignore all that. Just enjoy it as it is.

Next chapter should technically be the Happiness Village Arc, but knowing my release schedule, we'll see how that goes. I also kind of want to do a side-chapter too...

TL;DR:

Luka buys a shirt.

Luka receives a sword.

Boss Rush.

Red Orb received.


	4. Chapter 4: Happiness Village (Part 1)

Near the entrance of a lonely village, a wooden signboard with worn out lettering lingered in the brush. Ivy swirled along the post, hugging it and at the same time tearing it apart. An old relic from the past that was still used to for its intended purpose; only time dictated whether or not it should still stand.

_This place was Enrika Village_.

A strange atmosphere stained the air. It was peaceful. It was warm. It was comforting. But... there was something off. A vague contradiction. A misplaced memory.

Gentle, but heavy. Clean, but oversaturated.

This was a town that was forever in waiting...

…

At the very edge...

A lone woman with long blonde hair...

"You... Don't appear to be merchants..."

Her blue eyes briefly studied the two before her. She bowed and, with a kind voice, apologized...

"I'm sorry, it may be rude to say this, but please go. Other than merchants, we don't allow anyone else in the village."

Still bending down...

"You may take offense at our prohibition, but this is how we've lived for a long time. If you are sensible, please let us be."

"..."

The boy frowned... but took her feelings in earnest.

"...I understand, sorry for the trouble."

He nodded his head and turned away.

The winding path leading back into the forest was far. Had he given up too easily? Maybe. But it was more strange why he was attracted to such a place to begin with. There was no reason for him to be there, but there was an unconscious drive that led him to wander towards this old forgotten village. He needed to move on. He needed to move forward. He began reaching to the place he ought to be.

But before his hand could catch the reflection of the sun...

…

"_Wait..._"

Hearing her speak up again, the boy turned his head. His gaze locked onto her soft expression.

"Could it be that... Is your name..."

"..."

…

The woman took a closer look... towards his face... his eyes... his hair... and towards the ring on his hand...

"_Luka_?"

…

He was puzzled. Not knowing how to react, he half-smiled as a default action.

"...That's right."

"..."

She stepped back and hesitated before introducing herself.

"My name... is Micaela..."

Speaking quietly, she lowered herself.

"I knew... your father and mother well..."

…

What would need to happen in Enrika Village is something reserved for a later time.

But along with the images that rushed through the boy's mind, Micaela's name is something he would not forget...

**Chapter 4**

_One day later…_

"_Uwaaaaa~_"

Alice raised a hand to cover a yawn. With her yellow eyes half open and her silver hair slightly in disarray, she uncurled herself from the tree she used as a resting spot.

"_Oi. Luka..._"

The monster girl sluggishly slid over to the boy's tent. She called out in a tired voice.

"_Make me breakfast. I'm hungry._"

The lamia pulled back one of the tent's flaps to look inside.

"**A-Alice...! Is that you...!**"

Luka was in a panicked state. The boy spoke through his teeth as he apparently could not open his jaw.

"**I-I-I can't move for some reason...! I think I might be paralyzed!**"

The monster girl narrowed her eyes.

Next to him, a shirtless girl with long brown hair was sleeping soundly next to him. Two long elephant leaves sticking out from the top of her head identified herself as a mandrake-type monster. How she got there? Maybe she snuck in overnight. Or more likely, dug herself up from underneath the boy's tent in search for light and nutrients. Either way, Luka wasn't reacting too well with her _**passive plant abilities**_.

"Sorry to interrupt."

Alice closed the flap.

"**O-Oi! Where do you think you're going! Come back! Please come back!**"

Feeling the mandrake girl drape her arm over his torso...

"_Unyaa..._"

"**Huh? What was that?! Who's there?!**"

* * *

><p>"So... Is this going to be a running theme? Ignoring me every time I'm in trouble?"<p>

"Is that what you call trouble? Most would consider you to be _very lucky_."

The boy and the monster walked side-by-side. Their destination: Happiness Village. The reason: to satiate someone's appetite. Truly, the path to becoming a Hero was long and far.

"And how quickly you choose to forget the incident in Iliasburg. I should punish you for being so ungrateful."

Luka's eyes glazed over.

"_Oh, right. That... I don't think said it properly, but thank you for that._"

"Don't get sentimental. It's disgusting."

Though she stuck out her hand for him to stop, she seemed to be enjoy the praise, even if it was half-hearted.

"..."

Luka decidedly raised his glance towards the sky. Through the foliage of the forest, he could pick out clouds and large birds surfing an endless blue landscape. Surely, a sunny day was a sign for a peaceful day.

"Hey Alice. I've been wondering about this for awhile now..."

Luka movements were a bit stiff as he walked. The effects of the mandrake's pollen hadn't completely worn off yet.

"There have been monsters out there saying that I smell 'good'. What does that mean? What do I smell like...?"

Alice put a finger to her lips.

"If I had to describe it... maybe ripe cherries?"

"_Cherries?_"

"No, nevermind. In any case, it's pointless to worry about it."

"Why shouldn't I be worried? It seems like I'm being targeted because of it."

"It's somewhat expected. After all, you weren't baptised now, were you?"

The boy was confused.

"...? It has something to do with that?"

"A baptism changes your scent. You didn't know that?"

"...Well, not really."

Alice sighed audibly.

"_How did you get so far without knowing at least that much_?"

The boy took a moment to recover from an imaginary blow. He continued on shortly after.

"I thought receiving Ilias's blessing was more or less a symbolic ritual... I didn't expect there to be a real purpose behind it..."

Alice frowned and explained it to him.

"The baptisms work as a repellent of sorts towards weak monsters. They cause humans to reek of Angel Liver, and to say the least, these humans become undesirable to be around."

"I see... (_Huh? What? Angel Liver?_)"

The lamia crossed her arms.

"But even without a baptism, there are other factors that determine whether or not certain humans become prey for monsters. Age. Threat. Personal tastes. Taking everything into consideration, generally those who are attacked and eaten are the ones with young faces and submissive personalities."

"..."

…

Luka pointed at his face.

"And that's... supposed to be me...?"

Thinking about how to respond, Alice smiled deviously.

"_Would you like to find out?_"

Her tail graced the back of his leg, causing him to jump up in reaction.

"Tha-! That isn't funny, you know!"

Alice stifled a laugh with her fingers.

"_Relax._ A connoisseur like me has no interest in dining on such skimpy dish. Though... that could easily change if I don't get any Happiness Honey anytime soon..."

"_Really! Stop that!_"

"Oh? Did you think that was a joke?"

"..."

…

Quickly turning away...

"Happiness Village shouldn't be too far."

"That's good to hear."

Becoming increasingly aware of the dangers of traveling with a monster, the boy continued walking, making sure to keep his distance from the lamia.

"Do you know why they call it 'Happiness Village'?"

Alice popped a question. No doubt, she already knew the answer from reading the 'World Traveler' guidebook; however, Luka was getting tired of being treated like a fool.

"I'm sure you're going to tell me."

"Really. Guess now."

The boy's expression thinned.

"I suppose... it's because it's a very happy place?"

A short-lived image of villagers skipping through a field appeared in his head. The lamia cheerfully smiled.

"What are you, an idiot?"

[ _Screams internally._ ]

"The reason stems from the closeby Harpy Village."

"I see..."

He let out a breath.

"Happiness... Harpy... I can see the possible etymology there..."

"With that in mind, it'd be in your best interest to keep your guard up. Harpies can be rather difficult to deal with. Especially when they're in the air. You never know when one could swoop down and carry you off to a nest."

This is important information, so don't take what I'm saying lightly. It'd be troublesome if-"

She glanced to the side and noticed an outline taking the spot where Luka used to be.

"..."

In the split second Alice took her eyes off him, the boy had been whisked away by a bird-like creature.

"..._Ara?_"

* * *

><p>It was like an out-of-body experience. His vision had turned into video footage, and the camera had suddenly rocketed into the sky. The ground quickly grew into a distant sight. Along with the shrill sound of wind passing by Luka's ears, he could also hear someone whistling.<p>

"Oh ho~ That was a nice catch~ Oh hey~!"

"..."

He looked up.

Feathers. Feathers were what the boy's eyes were drawn to, as they extended out and blotted the sun from his point of view. While the girl's face and torso resembled that of a human's, in place of arms were massive hawk-like wings. And feathers traced down her waist and legs to the talons that gripped the boy's shoulders. Luka was in the presence of a new type of monster.

He immediately started yelling.

"**HA-HAAAAAAAAAA?-! WHAT THE- LET ME GO! WHERE ARE YOU TAKING ME?-!**"

"It's a good day to fly, don't you think mister? Oh ho~"

She gave him a wink.

"You got yourself a good smell for a hubby~! Oh hey~ Couldn't resist picking you up on the spot~! Oh ho~"

"**L-LET ME GO!**"

Forcefully shifting his weight around haphazardly, Luka was desperate to literally escape her clutches. This threw off the harpy's balance somewhat.

"Mister, it isn't a good idea for you to be moving so much...! Oh hey~!"

She seemed genuinely concerned for his safety.

"**AS IF I'D LET MYSELF BE KIDNAPPED LIKE THIS! I'M SUPPOSED TO BE A HERO DAMN IT!**"

As Luka struggled, the harpy started to sweat. She obviously didn't anticipate her load to be so difficult to handle. The two were flying through the air in an almost sine wave from a lateral perspective.

"Mister, if this continues on-"

"**JUST LET GO ALREADY!**"

_Fwip!_

That was the sound of the boy slipping through her claws.

"I told you so... Oh ho~!"

"...?"

With his back turned towards the surface of the Earth, the boy half-smiled after realizing how painful this was going to be. Luka quickly plummeted downward in a freefall. And eventually crashed through the thatch roofing of someone's home.

Luka had been dropped off in the thicket of Happiness Village.

* * *

><p><em>Shortly thereafter arriving...<em>

Inside a different home, the boy found himself having tea with an elderly woman shrunk with age. Her white hair had been tied neatly into a bun and her clothes suggested that she was of high status; however there was a certain livelihood that she exuded that conflicted with her image.

"Welcome to Happiness Village! ...is something I'd like to say but no doubt your experience so far hasn't been pleasant."

Steam gently rose from the ceramic teaset.

"As current acting chief, I'd like to apologize for that. I wish a traveler like yourself could've happened to our village under more... normal circumstances."

"Oh, no! I should be one apologizing here! After all, I just destroyed someone's roof! _Hahahaha_!"

The elder didn't find it funny, so Luka immediately stopped laughing.

Bits of straw stuck out of Luka's hair. Falling more than ten stories high, it was a nothing short of a miracle that he made it out with only a few scratches. Of course, the boy would currently rather be lying down than having tea. And while not apparent, he was suffering from a massive headache.

"Lively aren't you? Regular people would need more than a few hours to recover from a fall like that. Are you sure you're alright?"

"Eh...? Uh, I think I'm more lucky than anything… If I landed on a rock or didn't have anything to break my fall, I think I'd be dead…"

"I guess you're right…"

The Village Elder raised a cup to her mouth and lowered it.

She sighed.

"Young traveler... would you be so kind and take a look out that window for me?"

Luka blinked but did as he was told. Standing up, he walked over to the nearby window.

"Tell me, what do you see?"

He observed through the glass.

"... Everything seems to be peaceful. I can see villagers attending to crops. And... those must be the beehives Happiness Village is so famous for..."

He began noticing.

"Wait..."

His eyes darted around the scenery as he searched, but not a single one was in sight.

"Where..._ are all the men?_"

...

The Village Elder slowly rose from her spot.

"It's... been more than a month since the harpies have started raiding our village. But instead of taking livestock or gold, they've been abducting the men of our village. My husband, the real village chief, was one of the first to be taken..."

"..."

Looking out the window, she gazed into the distant forest where a fleet of shadows hovered in the air. She closed her eyes.

"In the beginning, the kidnappings were far and few in between. As time went by though, their frequency increased. Fathers and sons. Brothers and uncles. Day by day, they were all picked off, carried away never to return. And eventually... this village became a settlement of only women..."

A quiet anger was building up.

"We have no idea what they could be doing to them. Working them as slaves? Eating them for food? It's a nightmare that only plagues those left behind..."

She spoke in an unfeeling manner.

"Young traveler... though you may have just arrived here… and you may not be in the best of shape… I urge you to leave this place as soon as you can. As the acting Village Elder, it is my responsibility to tell you that as long as you're in Happiness Village, you are in danger."

Luka turned his head. And the defeated expression of a stern old woman met his glance.

At that moment, he knew that there was no turning back from this point.

...

"...I understand."

* * *

><p>Within the forest, there was a clearing. A large circular area partitioned from the rest of the woods. Short grass laid the foundation for a natural buffer-zone and in the very center of the circle, a group of massive trees towered over the rest of the wildlife. Here was the place the harpies created a settlement.<p>

"Sorry I was late for the meeting~ Oh ho~!"

A familiar harpy landed herself on a branch of one of the trees. She looked up towards someone perched from above.

"_What's the excuse this time? Did you get lost? Did you get distracted by something interesting?_"

The familiar harpy tilted her head.

"Interesting...? Maybe? I saw a boy in the woods. I tried bringing him here, but he fell out of my grip mid-flight. He's probably dead now. Oh hey~"

...

"..."

The familiar harpy began to sweat. She could feel a condescending glare beat down on her.

"_Oh, is that all now?_"

Quickly whistling:

"Ah, well... Now that I think about it, when I picked up that boy, I saw a snake lady close by... Oh ho~"

"_A snake... lady?"_

The harpy nodded.

"Yeah, yeah! Long silver hair, purple-ish, snake tail! Bonafide lamia! Oh hey~!"

"..."

...

The harpy raised a wing.

"Umm... can I go now? Oh ho~!"

She felt another glare.

"_You may... But send a message to the others..._"

[ INAUDIBLE ]

Blinking, the familiar harpy stammered.

"Are you sure? That's... why would..."

"_There's no proof, but it'd be wise to prepare if such an outcome were to come forth. Go now and spread the word."_

"R-Right! Oh hey~ Oh ho~!"

Flapping her wings, the harpy took off.

And left by herself, the residing Queen of Harpies smiled.

"_Indeed. This is interesting news._"

* * *

><p><em>Ka-cha~!<em>

Alice sneezed.

Rubbing her nose, she made note of all the molted feathers around her. Though, it seemed most were swept to the side as to clear the roads, the smaller feathers had a harder time sticking to the ground.

(_ "Oh? Who's that?"_ )

( _"A traveler?_" )

( _"She's got quite the outfit._" )

After a long trek, the monster girl had finally reached the front gates of Happiness Village. And she was met with suspicious glances from a few of the townsfolk. While some were interested by her arrival, others carried on with their daily activities.

Of course, Alice had changed herself into her human form before entering.

"..."

She narrowed her eyes. Scouring the humble farming community, she saw various townswomen transporting beehives and working with heavy equipment. She singled one of them out with a finger.

"You there...!"

"...?"

The lamia had chosen a girl with a young face and submissive personality. She beckoned her to come forward with a hand motion, and in response the Village Girl nervously approached.

"W-Welcome to Happiness Village... You came all the way here... but there's nothing here to entertain a traveler with..."

The Village Girl looked towards the ground.

"D-Due to a shortage of manpower... most of us have been bus-"

Cutting her off.

"Tell me. Have you seen any harpies fly by carrying onto a screaming boy?"

"..."

The Village Girl raised her glance.

"If it's harpies you're looking, there are plenty that fly over this town... Usually they come in droves in the late afternoon... But boys..."

Tilting her head.

"...?"

Something lit her eyes.

"Ah! This morning there was someone that came crashing through the roof of one of my friend's! And he was screaming!"

Screaming was the natural thing to do in that situation, but to that girl it was an afterthought.

"I think... He bought himself a jar of honey and left..."

Alice narrowed her eyes.

"_Did he now_?"

The monster girl had a look of exasperation on her face. She seemed to be piecing together the jist of the situation.

"When you mentioned a _shortage of manpower_, I don't suppose you mean that harpies have been taking men from this village."

"Uh… um, that's exactly what's happening."

Alice narrowed her eyes further. She sighed.

"_That idiot… He's gonna get himself killed_…"

Leaning back and scruffing her hair in frustration, Alice groaned.

"Looks like I'll be waiting here for a while then."

The timid girl slowly backed away from the foreigner.

"If… there's anything else I could help you with… I could…"

"There is."

The disguised lamia robotically turned her head. There was something she needed to do. Her duty as a connoisseur was calling in the wake of arriving at the village.

"**Happiness Honey. Where is it.**"

Less of a statement and more of a demand, Alice's appetite took control of her voice.

"Uh… uh…"

The girl was increasingly becoming more uncomfortable with the visitor.

"Our final batch… just left a few hours ago to Iliasport by carriage… We won't be able to make any more until tomorrow… that boy took the last jar in our stock."

…

"Eh?"

( Part 1 of 2 complete )


	5. Chapter 5: Omake

**Monsterpedia Lite**:

**Slime Girl**

Being an anthropomorphized slime, she appears to be made of some kind of clear/blue gelatinous substance that allows her to take form of something resembling human. Though, in this story, it appears that covering her in water breaks her down somewhat. While non-lethal to the slime girl, it's inconvenient. Her personality can be described as curious and playful. As a slime, she's the very first monster every proper Hero does battle with. She's also the cover girl for this fanfic if you haven't noticed the image.

_As the slime girl sways back and forth..._

_So too does her chest..._

"Ararara~? Have I gotten popular?"

The slime girl glistened slightly while standing in the sun. She clasped her hands together.

"I only appeared for a short while~ But having fans is nice~"

Pressed together, her hands started to combine.

"Thank you so much~ Let's meet again sometime~!"

Extra:

"I'll defeat the Monster Lord!"

Saying that stock phrase, Luka swung his sword down on slime girl.

"Ahn~!"

The blade slowly sunk into her.

"Y-Your stiff metal sword is ravishing my insides~!"

"Eh...?"

Blushing, the slime girl reached her arm out to close their distance.

"You'll... You'll take responsibility, right~?"

"_R-Responsibility...!"_

* * *

><p><strong>Unnecessary Addition<strong>:

_Message: if you add monster girls who didn't appear in the game i suggest twin werewolf sisters one a fierce tom boy slash first ask never kind of gal (pounces in front of luka ) fight me! face me in one on one combat!(shows her fangs and claws) and if you lose your mine! get it? got it? good! (attacks) and her sister a bouncy bubbly ditzy air head (walk up to luka wagging het tail 3) umm excuse me i know this is sudden and we just met but (blushes) my mate i want you to be my mate (glomps luka) pweaase!(_)_

Alright. Sure.

Luka was traveling along the outskirts of a forest...

When suddenly...!

A tomboyish werewolf girl pounced in front of him!

"Fight me! Face me in one-on-one combat, and if you lose you're mine! Get it? Got it! Rawr!"

Luka took a step back.

"What's with this unexpected development...!"

Backing up some more, the boy accidentally bumped into someone else.

"...!"

"Umm... excuse me..."

Taking a look... he saw another werewolf girl similar to the one in front of him. Somehow, she gave off a feeling of being a bouncy bubbly ditzy air head.

"I know this is sudden and we just met, but..."

This werewolf girl wagged her tail as she spoke up.

"I want you... to be my mate!"

In a swift motion, she dove at the boy with her arms outstretched...! And at the same time...!

"Hey! Don't ignore me!"

The first werewolf girl also leapt out in an attack!

"..."

Luka sidestepped and the twin werewolves collided into each other. The two immediately passed out on the ground.

"..."

And after a moment of hesitation, the boy decidedly walked away from the scene.

[ Luka gained 25 exp! ]

* * *

><p><strong>Unnecessary Addition:<strong>

_Message: pretty awsome fic this update soon and even though you dont put in rape scenes at least have luka get some of the monster girls hug and kiss him i mean since he just got his arse handed to him by some bitch dragon girl and has a lamina calling him an idiot he should have some monster girls trying to comfort him (whether he wants it or not) like that slug girl and slime girl._

"Who are you calling '_some bitch dragon girl'_, huuuuh?-!"

Granberia contorted her face angrily. Standing next to her, Alice breathed a sigh.

"Don't get excited over something so trivial."

Granberia gritted her teeth in irritation.

"Y-You...!"

The lamia continued lazily:

"But... I suppose being nice to _that boy_ every now and then wouldn't be a bad idea."

…

Later...

"GO LUKA GO! GO LUKA GO!"

"YOU CAN DO IT! FIGHT-O!"

"DON'T GIVE UP NOW! YOU HAVE SO MUCH TO LIVE FOR!"

Luka sweated.

_Are they... Are they bullying me...?_

* * *

><p><strong>Unnecessary Addition<strong>:

_Message: Quote this one chapter.._

_"The boy used his fist to punch the top of her head"..._

_I prefer you use the word Bonk instead of punch, It sounds too harsh..._

Luka scratched the back of his head.

"Was I too harsh...?"

He briefly thought over it.

"Well... I suppose I might've been, but... you can't take kids these days too lightly. If you don't show them the consequences of their actions, how else are they going to learn?"

Behind him, the Four Bandits gathered. They muttered several choice phrases at him:

"_Demon._"

"_Monster._"

"_Baldy_."

…

Luka pulled back his sleeve.

"Excuse for just a moment."

Rushing at them...!

( "WHO ARE YOU CALLING A BALDY...!" )

* * *

><p><strong>Unnecessary Addition:<strong>

_Message: please update this soon id really like to see how you have luka meet tamamo & the rest of them. ps do you agree that monster girl quest would make a great anime series? i mean they'd have tone it down from hentai to ecchi but if they did id definitely buy the dvd._

[ sfx: SNAP! ]

Closing her fan, the nine-tailed fox revealed a fanged smile.

"My~ Someone seems eager."

Tamamo! The next '_Heavenly Knight'_ appeared...! And in an omake nonetheless...!

"I admit, the prospect of showing up on primetime television is very exciting."

"But, before considering an anime series, let's keep our ambitions relative. For now, let's focus on making this fanfiction interesting, okay~"

Tamamo frowned afterwards.

"Though, it does trouble me that the pace we're going at is pretty slow... it may take a bit before my appearance comes to light."

…

"_Good for you..._"

"...Hmm?"

The nine-tailed fox expressed confusion at the sudden voice. Springing up from the ground beside her...

"_I said, 'Good for you.''_"

"Erubetie...!"

Another 'Heavenly Knight' surfaced...! This time, a slime girl!

"That's right! You...! You probably won't _show up at all_ in this fanficition, will you?"

Tamamo grinned.

"..."

Momentarily, the slime girl paused. She looked away.

"I'm not bothered by it."

"Ah~ There's no need to get so down."

"..."

"How about you make the most of what you have? After all, you made an appearance in this omake, right?"

Erubetie tilted her head.

"...Omake? You mean I'm-"

"Oh, it looks like it's ending now!"

"It's ending now...!"

* * *

><p><strong>Unnecessary Addition:<strong>

_Message: ...Damn Luka, you suck. Even more than you do usually._

Alice approached a certain boy.

"What's this? A little criticism and you're already crying?"

"I'm...! I'm not crying!"

"Then why are you on your hands and knees?"

"...!"

Luka rushed to come up with a reason.

"This is...! I'm praying! To the Great Goddess Ilias! I'm a follower, so this isn't unnatural!"

"Is that so."

Suddenly, Luka was transferred to an abyss of grey and white! The Goddess Ilias showed herself to the boy.

"Is there something you need?"

"..."

Dumbfounded, Luka stuttered.

"Err, not really. Someone on the Internet just said I sucked... and well..."

"..."

The goddess sighed.

"Please don't call me out for something so stupid."

Luka was transferred back.

"..."

The boy really wanted to cry.

* * *

><p>…<p>

Thank you all for the input. As someone who doesn't really write narratives, it's always good to see other people's assessments. I don't claim to be a good writer and I never have. More so, most of my other works tend to have a more experimental format, and MGQ is probably the most normal piece of work I've done so far. ( Though, I'd still consider it experimental in concept. )

…

If there's a review I haven't addressed ( there are a few ), it's because I couldn't find anything constructive or entertaining to say about it. Nonetheless, thanks to all of you who took the time to contribute. I'll say that every review, favorite, and follow helps motivate me to keep going with this project. This says a lot, because I'm an extremely lazy person.

Anyhow, next chapter will probably be part 2 of Happiness Village ( if I ever get around to finishing it )

TL;DR

You didn't miss anything.

This was an unnecessary addition.


End file.
